Students learn about high demand for skilled labor

Eric Renner knew his audience, so he got right to the point.

Renner was among six participants on a panel speaking at a Manufacturing Day event at Clark College on Tuesday. In front of him: about 200 students from 11 Southwest Washington high schools, all of whom were either hand-picked or sought the opportunity to spend half of the day at the community college and hear about life as welders, machine operators, design engineers, semiconductor processors and the like.

Renner, 19, is an apprentice crystal grower at SEH America in Vancouver, where he’s worked four months.

“What got me interested was the money,” Renner said.

We’ll get back to Renner in a moment.

High demand for skilled workers, pay for manufacturing occupations and the prospect of not racking up massive college debt appeared to be important lures for the participating students — mostly juniors and seniors.

A 2016 report from Workforce Southwest Washington and its partners in the Columbia-Willamette Workforce Collaborative says that half of the region’s advanced manufacturing workforce is 45 years or older. Over the next decade, employers will need to fill more than 30,000 vacancies due just to retirements.

“We’re trying to get people interested in the industries that need workers, that pay well,” said Melissa Boles, program manager for Workforce Southwest Washington.

Students visited tables featuring Clark County companies that sent representatives to describe their industries and their needs, including: SEH America, Columbia Machine, Graphic Packaging, Kyocera, Silicon Forest Electronics and Novolex/Bagcraft. Many of the students also toured the Machining Technology building, where instructor Pat Sevier led a rapid-fire tour of the array of tools on the classroom floor, as well as putting in a pitch for the companies where graduates now work, including Boeing, Columbia Machine and Christensen Yachts.

Jesus Olivera, 17, a Heritage High School senior, took the tour but had his eyes on another hands-on occupation.

“I’d like to be a carpenter and build houses for the community,” he said.

Sara Page, 15, a Washougal High School sophomore, was interested in seeing what participating companies offered.

“I’m not completely sure what career I want,” Page said. “So I thought I would come here and explore the careers.”

Izaak Milspaugh, 17, a Kelso High School senior, taught himself how to solder and now builds computers and servers in his spare time. He said he might be interested in jobs at Silicon Forest Electronics, which has a plant in Vancouver.

Renner and another SEH Career Launch apprentice, Devon Laverne, an 18-year-old Evergreen High School graduate, represented the company at an information table. SEH is paying for their community college education. Career Launch apprentices earn $12 to $14 an hour at the silicon crystal-growing company and are trained to become full-time technicians with a starting wage of $17 to $20 an hour. The median tech pay is $56,000 a year.

“Not a day goes by when I haven’t learned something new,” said Renner, who described the company to high school students with the confidence of a veteran.

The apprenticeship program is in its infancy, said Natalie Pacholl, SEH training and development specialist. But like other area industries needing to be creative in recruiting the next generation of workers, it will likely play a role in that process for SEH.